


Moony's Stand

by caz251



Series: Just Write! Trope Bingo 2020 [5]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Protective Remus Lupin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2020-09-08
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:08:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26361691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caz251/pseuds/caz251
Summary: Remus Lupin is making a stand to protect his cub.
Series: Just Write! Trope Bingo 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1857748
Comments: 3
Kudos: 33





	Moony's Stand

**Author's Note:**

> Written for my bingo square adulting for the Just Write Trope Bingo

Remus John Lupin was many things; wizard, werewolf, wanderer. He was a scholar, delving into the depths of any text he could find to escape from the reality that was his cursed life, searching out the most obscure of defensive magics. He was a lone wolf, his pack having been decimated, some dead, some locked up and some hidden away from him and the world; he only had himself to rely on, and no longer found comfort in others presence as company was a poor substitute for the bonds of pack. He travelled in his search for knowledge, never staying in one place too long, staying long enough to complete whatever temporary job he managed to gain before moving on again. It was rare that he stayed anywhere for more than a moon cycle, his condition meaning that he needed time to recuperate and those in the magical world who could read a lunar chart could easily note how his ‘illnesses’ would coincide with the full moon and would fire him for being a werewolf. He had similar problems with losing jobs in the muggle world, his need for time to heal always being to the detriment of his employment status.

What he wasn’t was unintelligent, despite his predisposition for turning into an animal every month he still had a sharp mind and capacity for logic. The escape of one of his old pack mates from Azkaban, the Wizarding prison, was major news all around the British Isles, that he received an offer to teach at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry almost as soon as the news hit was not a coincidence. Remus weighed up everything he knew about the situation, Black had betrayed the pack, leaving three of their members dead, with only him, Remus and little Harry surviving, and rumour had it that Black was headed for Hogwarts. Remus knew exactly what that meant; he was heading for Harry, the littlest member and only remaining true member of Remus’ pack, someone that Remus would do everything in his power to protect. Headmaster Dumbledore would be aware of that as well, and wouldn’t be above capitalising on Remus’ need to protect his cub as a way to secure a Defence professor and some extra security for the castle, be it in the form of the wizard with a wand, or the werewolf prowling the grounds on the full moon.

Remus accepted of course, he wasn’t stupid either; this was the first time he had been able to see his cub since before their pack had been ripped apart. While Remus was well aware of the prejudices of the Ministry and the magical world and knew that he would never be able to gain custody of Harry or take him away from the home he had been hidden away in he could be there for him and offer him any support that he could. He hadn’t been able to be at his side before now, but they would have to drag him away kicking and growling if they tried to separate him from his cub now.

He had taken the train to the school, partly to relive the experience he had as a child when surrounded by his pack, partly as apparating after a moon was something he tried to avoid, but mainly in the hopes of seeing Harry again sooner. He had fallen asleep before the train had filled with children, but was awoken by the feeling of dread and the chill that seeped into his bones that he recognised as signs of a dementors presence. Protecting those with him, sending his patronus at the dark shape and driving it back, Remus then left to check with the driver of the train. He had a duty of care to all the students on the train, he had to make sure that the dementors were gone, even if all he wanted to do was stay in his compartment with the boy that was undoubtedly his cub and lock everyone out to keep him safe.

His cub was affected a lot more than any of the other children had been by the vile creatures, and with his early traumas Remus could guess what memories the dementors had pulled to the forefront of his mind. The wolf in Remus whined and growled at the thought of their little cub having to mentally relive the death of their pack, he wanted to hold him close and make all his troubles disappear. He couldn’t though, his cub had no idea who he was yet, and a carriage full of children was not the place to address their shared past, instead all he could do was offer assurances that the dementors weren’t coming back and provide him with chocolate to help him try and combat the effect of the foul creatures. Of course that meant he had to share his chocolate with more than just his cub, it would be strange if Harry was the only one he provided chocolate to, something he wasn’t best pleased about, thinking about his chocolate stash depleting but it was a small price to pay if it meant that his cub began to shake off the effects of the dementors.

He would get his cub alone at some point soon to share their shared history and offer him his support, it couldn’t be now but it would be soon. Harry was herded off by Professor McGonagall when he reached the castle and Remus knew that the den mother would make sure that her lion was okay. He watched from the Head table as Harry took his seat among the Gryffindors, smiling weakly at his friends and then picking at his food, concern flowing through his veins as he watched his cub eat slowly, taking measured bites. There was something wrong with the picture he was seeing, Remus couldn’t place it at the moment, but he could tell that there was something beneath the surface of what he was seeing. He smiled out at the room when the Headmaster introduced him to the school, but his focus was on Harry the whole time they were in the hall.

He couldn’t wait for his first lessons to begin, it was just like when he had attended Hogwarts himself he could hardly wiat for classes to start so he could learn, now though he was excited to teach. Especially teaching Harry, there was so much he wanted to teach his cub, many spells that he could use to protect himself from those who would no doubt try to challenge him at some point in the future, his infamy from the time surrounding the death of their pack had meant that there were enemies no doubt waiting in the shadows to attack him when they could gain an advantage.

He would teach Harry everything that he could so that he would be able to protect himself and he would stand in the way of those trying to harm him until he was proficient in all that he could teach. He wouldn’t just abandon him then of course, but he would be a capable dueller in his own right by then and it would be an injustice to shield him from what was coming. At that point he would gladly stand at his cub’s side and fight with him if it came to that, for now though his cubs training and protection both lay with him. His main worry was their old pack mate, Black knew too many unmonitored ways into the castle for Remus’ liking, too many ways to get in that were unguarded by the dementors that roamed the perimeter of the grounds.

Remus no longer had access to the map that his pack had created, Filch had confiscated that from Peter in their last year and they had never managed to get it back, but he could still keep watch for the traitor in other ways. Remus had scoped out all the secret passageways that he knew Black would attempt to use and layered each one with wards and warning spells that would alert him if they were used. He slept a little better that first night after his warding spells were in place, knowing that unless Black was already in the castle which was highly unlikely that Harry was safe for the evening.

It took a few days for Remus to be able to corner his cub for a chat, asking him to remain after class Remus requested that he return after dinner so that they could talk. He had tempted him by mention of lessons of the patronus charm, the way in which he had repelled the dementors, it wasn’t as if it was an empty offer, he intended to teach it to his cub at his soonest convenience, the effect the dementors had on him being unacceptable to his wolf. Moony was agitated all through dinner, occasionally a tiny growl slipping passed his pursed lips as he watched his cub eat in small amounts again. It was something that he had observed all week and something that worried him, Harry never seemed to eat much and it seemed like even the small amount he did eat that nearly every bite was painful for him.

Telling his cub of their connection and assuring himself of Harry’s wellbeing were Moony’s top priorities, there was something that was telling him that there was something wrong with the cub. Fixing whatever the problem was would be Remus’ next job, he was unwilling to let whatever problems were ailing his cub get out of hand, they needed to be nipped in the bud. Remus hadn’t been much of a protector for his cub since their pack had fractured, his status as a werewolf meant that he would never be allowed custody and no-one was telling him where Harry had been hidden away for his safety. Now though he was determined to be in his cub’s life protecting him from whatever he could, be that dementors, death eaters or his own godfather. Sirius may have been the one that came from a dark family and got in to the auror force partly on the power behind his spellwork, but Remus was no slouch. He had several years with no real human connections, spending his time buried in books learning everything that he could.

Hopefully Harry would accept his apologies for not having been in his life before now and allow him to be a part of his life going forward. Remus was ready to do whatever it would take to be there for his cub, if that meant he had to take on Sirius Black, the Ministry, Dumbledore or even Voldemort he would, it was time that Remus stand up for what remained of his pack instead of wallowing about the loss of the rest of them.


End file.
